Anderson Harris
2020 Temple Philosophy Graduate
Admitted to South Carolina University for PhD Fall 2020

When I first decided to pursue a degree in philosophy, I signed up to participate in The Philosophy Mentor Program. I was lost and a bit intimidated by all that there was to learn and this program gave me a space to openly talk about the challenges, fears, and inevitable excitement that came with beginning to study philosophy. Later in my undergraduate career, I decided I wanted to work on philosophical issues at the graduate level. From that point on, my mentor guided me through the graduate application process, read over my application materials, and showed me what graduate-level philosophy was like from someone with first-hand experience. Overall, the Philosophy Mentor Program has helped me in two ways. First, when philosophy was still a new discipline to me, the program gave me a space to openly explore new ideas and talk about them with someone in a comfortable one-on-one basis. Second, as my life’s trajectory shifted into philosophy as a profession, the mentor program provided me support, advice, and guidance into the graduate application process. If I hadn’t participated I know I would not be the student, or even the person, I am today.